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help me fight ANTS!

Al-from-Chile

Al-from-Chile

Hi there,

We got a serious ant infestation in our house (I'm not talking just about plants here)

Quite a few "black trails" if you understand... I already nuked a couple of thousands b UT they were already within the house

Any surefire tips & tricks to get permanently rid of them?

TX Al
 
Ants could mean aphids too. So check your plants carefully for aphids.
Get some ant killer and put it anywhere you think the ants would be. Which is usually along the bottom of walls and in the kitchen. Ants love food scraps so you can set up traps using food scraps.
 
To protect your plants try making like a ribbon on the lowest part of the stem with a piece of plastic bag.

In Mexico we have some of those large ants that can strip a whole plant in one night (large rose bushes in my case). We just take a piece of plastic bag and wrap the stem (about 1/2 inch). With that they shouldn't climb on your plants.

, Vegas
 
I had luck getting them out of pots last season with h2o2.... it didn't kill them, but drove them out.... don't know how well it'll work indoors....
 
Better yet, you can put double sided tape on the outside of the pots, if you are finding them on your plants. They should stick to the tape and die hehe
 
Artificial sweetner wiped out my indoor ants. It contains aspartane...poison to ants. Use powdered sweetNlow, etc. Make sure it contains aspartane. Just sprinkle along the trails they travel, up against walls etc. They haul it off and soon disappear.

It worked 100% for those tiny tiny ants in my kitchen. HTH

Vegas_Chili said:
To protect your plants try making like a ribbon on the lowest part of the stem with a piece of plastic bag.

In Mexico we have some of those large ants that can strip a whole plant in one night (large rose bushes in my case). We just take a piece of plastic bag and wrap the stem (about 1/2 inch). With that they shouldn't climb on your plants.

, Vegas
Click to expand...

Wow. Hard to believe they wouldn't just crawl right on by. Here in South Texas we have the leaf cutter ants...will strip a peper plant overnight as well. I've been waiting for them to start marching here soon as they are a problem in my area. Always had to spray some type of poison on the patio to keep them away. Ribbon huh? Hmmmmmmmmmmm..
 
Get diatomaceous earth - it is effective against all things with exoskeletons, yet it is non-toxic and can even be ingested by humans. (Hey, they sell food-grade diatomaceous earth....) You have to sprinkle it on the little critters to be effective. Check it out on Wikipedia. Should be available at your local hardware store.
 
geeme said:
Get diatomaceous earth - it is effective against all things with exoskeletons, yet it is non-toxic and can even be ingested by humans. (Hey, they sell food-grade diatomaceous earth....) You have to sprinkle it on the little critters to be effective. Check it out on Wikipedia. Should be available at your local hardware store.
Click to expand...

This works and is cheap. Make sure it is food grade though.
 
geeme said:
Get diatomaceous earth - it is effective against all things with exoskeletons, yet it is non-toxic and can even be ingested by humans. (Hey, they sell food-grade diatomaceous earth....) You have to sprinkle it on the little critters to be effective. Check it out on Wikipedia. Should be available at your local hardware store.
Click to expand...

Yup and put rings around your plants to keep them protected too, the critters will not cross it. But it is useless once it gets wet, including morning dew.
 
Borax, you will find it in the laundry detergent aisle of the grocery. Dust some by the baseboards and anywhere you see the trails entering or leaving the house. Do not use if you have pets or small children since it is toxic if you eat it but is otherwise safe. Do not use in the garden or on any planted soil since it will cause a major spike in Boron levels.
 
geeme said:
Get diatomaceous earth - it is effective against all things with exoskeletons, yet it is non-toxic and can even be ingested by humans. (Hey, they sell food-grade diatomaceous earth....) You have to sprinkle it on the little critters to be effective. Check it out on Wikipedia. Should be available at your local hardware store.
Click to expand...

Sorry, but not available here :-(

Streamer said:
Artificial sweetner wiped out my indoor ants. It contains aspartane...poison to ants. Use powdered sweetNlow, etc. Make sure it contains aspartane. Just sprinkle along the trails they travel, up against walls etc. They haul it off and soon disappear.

It worked 100% for those tiny tiny ants in my kitchen. HTH
Click to expand...

I'm trying this right now - mixed up aspartame and sugar with water and sprinkled it on the wall...

I figure if they and don't die from the aspartame they will at least fall into a diabetic coma :D

Thx all!
AL
 
in your house, wipe down where you see them with vinegar and a little tea tree oil. they leave pheromone trails which they follow back and forth. if you clean these with this stuff, they won't follow the trail anymore.
 
I will be trying both vinegar and some Equal packets I snagged here at work when i get home. Should be an interesting experiment.
 
No recommendations for ant bait?

They'll haul that poisoned bait off to their queen and kill the whole colony. I'd get two different brands because not all ant types eat the same food.

And around the perimeter of your house, you can use pest granules.

Bait: http://www.homedepot...vk#BVRRWidgetID

Granules: http://www.homedepot...wq#.UYr0dVL0lps

^^^ These are just examples.

Edit: I just noticed the original poster lives in Chile, but i'm sure they have to have similar products there (?)
 
I wanted to follow up with my results. The Aspartame did not seem to do a whole lot. I used two packets of Equal with a little juice mixed in. They swarmed and ate that up within 6 hours so I added another two packets and a little more juice. I finally set out some raid ant baits two days ago which seems to be eliminating the problem.

IMG_20130508_182046_936_zpsf2689e74.jpg

IMG_20130508_190913_475_zpsc98b3f34.jpg
 
i made similar exeriences ...
 
pure aspartame powder was not exactly a roaring success ... so I mixed the aspartame with powdered sugar ... got them going crazy
 
 
I only wonder if it really kills them, or if I am growing ants in my house :D
 
cheers
al
 
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